Supporting people affected by East Japan Earthquake (11.3.11)
2011.3.11 is the day a massive earthquake and tsunami hit the Tohoku region in northeast Japan. No words can describe the devastation. The unprecedented recovery effort is still in it’s early phase. It will be a long slow journey taking years. Any support, large or small, is appreciated from any part of the world. Support can be in the form of fundraising events and strategies, discussions and seminars, concerts, art, poetry or a just a few words of thought and care. There is something each one of us can do, and collectively that will generate the energy to move forward and create an opportunity of an improved future for all.
11311は東日本大震災からの復興を支援するとともに、自然環境と人間の共生について今一度振り返り、より持続性ある社会への転換を世界的に考え、行動していくキャンペーンです。このロゴにはかけがえのないこの地球に共存するものとして、11311を忘れることなく、よりよい未来のために協力していくという願いと誓が込められています。
Please contact us if you have suggestions or wish to support by using this logo.
Kumi Kato kumikato@gol.com
Simon Wearne simon@stripeydog.tv
11311 is a campaign which aims to draw the world’s attention to a need for change, post the East Japan Earthquake and tsunami. The 11th of March, 2011 is forever etched in the history of human endeavor and will be remembered for ever in Japan. The challenge for all of us in 2011, more than ever before, is to find a way to coexist with nature and succeed. 11311 calls for an imaginative, creative and shared response, to pause, think, and assess fundamental systems, both natural and engineered. We must plan to rebuild in a sustainable, responsible and accountable way which guarantees our future success as humans relating to each other and to the planet. We are all connected as one people, on one place, Planet Earth. We must understand the nature of this disaster and work towards long-term improvement, a better future, and forever remember 11311 (Simon Wearne, March 2011)
(A collaboration between designers Simon Wearne and Kodama Natsuki) The logo is a date, a day in history. It is a day to remember and a day to consider action. The resilience of this date to read and hold its symmetry across cultural borders is significant. The logo has a simple symmetry. A combination of the use of western numerals, and the Kanji 三, provide strong graphic elements with potential for multiple interpretations in their symbolism. The elevens stand as symbols of strength firmly containing the three bars of the Kanji, the heart of the message. The three bars are the central element, working like the rising sun on the Japanese flag. This is accentuated when the logo is rendered white on a dark ground when the central bars are red. The elevens become pause buttons to ask us to stop for a moment, consider the meaning and the message, and to pause once again before we move on in our daily life. The central element, apart from signifying March 11, 2011, the day of change for Japan, represents a day on which the whole world was shown just how vulnerable we all are to the forces of nature. Since March 11, we have seen other countries revise their policy on Nuclear energy. We have seen an increased consciousness in planning sustainable development. There is a re assessment of our vulnerability to natural disaster. Many companies and government agencies, severely impacted by their losses of both human resources and material resources are re assessing how they rebuild and insulate themselves against a repeat of this experience. This is having an effect in areas not directly impacted by the earthquake and tsunami. The three horizontal bars can mean different things to different people and this is why this design can be effective far beyond Japan. While the origins of this design begin with a significant date in history, the objectives can spread into a global movement. We must always remember Japans loss, but we must turn that into a positive message which can bring positive outcomes in a way that may not have been possible before 11311.
The three central bars can be symbolic of many things. Primarily they are: Land/ Water/Air - the three fundamentals of life on Earth.